Metal awning construction



April 23, 1957 R. H. GROSSENBACHER ETAL 2,789,324

METAL AWNING couswauc'rrou Filed Dec. 22, 1954 2 SheetS -Sheet l 1 44 a4 50 22 I 20 65 G 46 [Alvin/Taxes: ROBERT H. GROSSENBHCHER HENRY E. GROiSEA/BRCHER April 23, 1957 R. H. GROSSENBACHER ETAL ,789,32

METAL AWNING CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 22,- 1954 2 Sht'et-Sheet 2 lNVEh/TORSZ ROBERT h. GROSSEn/BACHER, HENRY E. GROSSENBflCr/ER M MW THE/R arronwn United States METAL AWNING CONSTRUCTION Robert H. Grossenbacher and Henry E. Grossenbacher, Overland, Mo.

Application December 22, 1954, Serial No. 476,914

Claims. (Cl. --57.5)

The present invention relates to awnings, and more particularly to a novel and improved construction for metallic awnings of the rigid and permanent type. The type of awnings under consideration are usually fabricated from sheet metal or the like, and once installed, such awnings become fixtures with respect to the building structure whereon they are mounted. Further, awnings of this type are not intended to be raised andlowered with respect to the window frames, wherefore it is desirable that means be incorporated in the awnings providing for the free circulation of air therethrough. It is also desirable that such awnings be self-draining, and so constructed that the windows and window frames associated therewith be shielded from rain, snow, hail, sleet, and obviously, from the rays of the sun.

The primary object of the present invention therefore, is to provide a novel awning construction that incorporates means designed to obtain the advantages set 'forth above.

Another object of the inventionisto provide a novel awning construction wherein the ventilation means further serves to disclose to an observer from within the building, a panoramic view of the landscape beyond the awning, and also serves to admit more light into the window associated with the awning than is admitted when awnings of known constructions are employed.

A further object is to provide a novel awning construction of light weight material, preferably of sheet aluminum, thus facilitating the fabrication, transportation, and installation thereof.

It is another object of this invention to provide an awning construction including a plurality of similar panel members, adjacent panel members having flexible interlocking connections that also serve to strengthen and add rigidity to the assembled awning.

As will appear hereinafter, these flexible interlocking connections of the panel members enable and facilitate the fabrication of either angularly sloping awnings, arcuately contoured awnings, or awnings wherein both com figurations are combined if desired. At their ends, the panel members are provided with flanges that are bent normal to the main body portion thereof. Spaced apertures are formed in the flanges, and by means of suitable fastening devices, said flanges are secured to end plates that have been formed into the desired awning contour. Pressed from the body portion of each panel member except the uppermost of an'assembled awning, are rows of spaced louvers, constituting the ventilation means aforesaid. The flexible interlocking connections between adjacent panel members are coextensive therewith,v extending from end plate to end plate of the awning, and each end plate includes a flange bent inwardly to overlie the end portions of'the panel members. Said connnections consist of rolledformations' or sections constituting the opposite marginal edges: of each panel member, and'a's will appear, a rolled. section of one panel member is adapted to-inter-engage' that of an. adjacent one whereby to effect the connection.

2,789,324 Patented Apr. 23', "1957 ice The uppermost panel member of an awning constructed in accordance with our invention will have its top rolled section ofiset for engagement with a suitable hanger strip anchored for example to a building, on or above the liutel of a window. In consequence of this arrangement, the awning will be supported at the top from end to end thereof. At each end adjacent the bottom thereof, the awning will further be supported by means of a suitable horizontally disposed brace member. I

Inasmuch as awnings of the type hereincontemplated are employed to protect building openings. of various sizes, it is also an object of our invention to provide an awning construction that may be fabricated in any desired length without de arting from the structural concepts set forth.

Novel features of the construction, and advantages or the invention not specifically noted hereinbefore, will be apparent from the detailed description to follow with reference to two sheets of drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is an outside the-building elevational view of an installed awning constructed in accordance with the teachings'ot' the presentinvention;

Figure 2 is a right end elevational view of the awning installation appearing in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale, taken vertically through the awning on the line 3-3 of Figure I;

Figure 4 isa reproduction on an enlarged scale of a fragmentary portion of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a vertical sectional view,- on an enlarged scale, taken throughthe left end of theawning' on the line 5-==5' of Figure 3; p

Figure 6 is a vertical sectional view of the uppermost panel member of the awning;

Figure 7 is a vertical sectional view of one of the intermediate panel members of said awning;

Figure 8 is a greatly magnified sectionalview particularly illustrating in detail one of the flexible connections serving to integrate the panel members of the'awning;

Figure 9 is an exterior elevationalview of a fragmentary portion of one of the intermediate panel members, presenting in actual scale proportions one of the louver formations therein;

Figure 10 is a sectional view taken on the line 10-40 of Figure 9; and

Figure 11 is a view similar to Figure 3, this view ex.- hibi-ting an angularly disposed awning construction.

An awning generally designated 12, and constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention, is shown in Figures 1 and 2 as it appears when installed with respect to the frame F of a window W, the lintel of the frame being desig'nated L, and the sill thereof being designated S. It is of course understood that the window frame is illustrated more or less diagrammatically for exemplary purposes only, inasmuch as the invention is also adapted for installation over door or other openings of a building.

The awning 12 includes an uppermost panel member 14, a lowermost panel member 16, and a plurality of intermediate panel members 18, five intermediate panel members being exemplarily' shown. The panels are of generally rectangular configuration, and it is noted that each awning construction of the invention includes the panel members 14 and 16, but the number of intermediate panel members 18 may be increased or diminished, as vin'll be explained in more detail hereinafter.

The uppermost panel member 14 is shown in vertical section on an enlarged scale in Figure 6. It includes in teg'rally: a main body portion 25 an offset extension 22 at top; a rolled formation or hollow head section 24 constituting the marginal edge of the extension 22, said offset extension and bead section being: longitudinally coextensive with the main body portion 20 of the panel memher; a flange 26 bent normal to the main body portion of tom marginal edge of the body portion 20, and also being longitudinally coextensive therewith.

The lowermost panel member 16 and all of the intermediate panel members 18 are identically formed. A

vertical section through one of them is shown on an enlarged scale in Figure 7. There it is seen that each of these panel members includes integrally: a main body portion 32; a rolled formation or hollow bead section 34 constituting one marginal edge of said main body; a similar hollow bead section 36 constituting the other marginal edge of the main body portion, both bead sections being longitudinally coextensive therewith; a flange 38 bent normal to the main body portion 32 of the panel member at each end thereof, said flanges being provided with circular apertures 40 as shown; and as viewed in Figure 1, rows of vertically and horizontally spaced louvers 42 pressed from or extruded from said main body portion of the panel member.

With attention directed particularly also to Figure 8, it will be observed that the hollow bead sections 24, 30, 34, and 36 are identically formed into a substantially circular segment 44 that merges into and terminates in a radial segment 46. It will be remembered that the awning structure 12 is preferably of sheet aluminum, this material lending itself readily to the fashioning of said bead sections and the louvers 42.

A fragmentary exterior elevational view, and a sectional view of one of the louver formations 42 is presented in actual scale proportions in Figures 9 and 10, an eye-level opening of visibility being diagrammatically indicated at 48 with the body portion 32 of an intermediate panel member 18 in perpendicular disposition. In an ultimately assembled awning 12, the panel members will be angularly disposed, thus enhancing the visibility factor as should be manifest from an inspection particularly of Figure 8. The arcuate configurations and mergings of the louvers 42 into the main body of the panel members serve not only to protect the openings 48 against rain for example, but also serve to automatically divert the rain into what will be termed the drain channels 50 that are defined, with particular reference to Figure 1, by the confluences of the horizontally spaced louver formations 42 with the main body portions 32 of the panel members 16 and 18.

The awning 12 includes a pair of side or end plates each generally designated by the numeral 52. Of arcuate configuration, each end plate 52 includes a main body portion 54 as best seen in Figure 5, and an inwardly extending flange portion 56.

All of the panel members are secured to the end plates by means of aluminum bolts 58 and nuts 60, each bolt passing through an aperture 62 formed in the main body portion 54 of the end plates 52, and through one of the apertures 28 or 40 of the panel member end flanges 26 or 38, as should be understood from an inspection of Figures 3 and 5.

Each of the end-to-end flexible connections between adjacent panel members is indicated generally by the numeral 64. As clearly demonstrated in Figure 8, each connection 64 is produced in consequence of the intertwining or intervolving of the hollow head section 36 of an upper panel. member with the hollow bead section 34 of an adjacent lower panel member. The flexible connection between the uppermost panel member 14 and the adjacent intermediate panel member 18 is also identified by the numeral 64, inasmuch as this connection is similar to the others, the bead section 30 being a counterpart of the bead sections 36. It is noted that in Figure 3, the connections 64 are not shown in precise detail, inasmuch as the scale of this view is too small for a true showing of them.

With reference now to Figure l and particularly to Fig 4 ure 4, numeral 65 designates generally a suitable hanger strip that is illustrated as being permanently secured by nails or screws to the lintel L of the window frame. It is of course understood that said hanger may be afiixed to the building above the lintel should more clearance be desired, or for any other reason. The hanger 65 includes a channel segment 66 for the reception of the hollow bead section 24 of the uppermost panel member 14, whereby the awning 12 will be supported at the top from end to end thereof. In the illustrated form, the hanger strip 65 also includes amain body portion 67 provided with spaced apertures for the reception of the mounting nails or screws, and a reversely bent segment 68 disposed in spaced parallel relationship relatively to said body portion 67, as shown.

Preferably, in order to shield the channel segment 66 and the therein disposed bead section 24 from the elements, the invention contemplates provision of the rectangularly contoured protective strip element designated by the numeral 69. The protective strip 69 is coextensive with the hanger strip 65 as shown in Figure 1. It may be secured in place by the same nails employed in mounting the hanger strip, the segment 68 being bent into the position demonstrated in Figure 4 after the nails have been driven, as should be understood.

Numeral 70 designates a brace member that is preferably horizontally disposed with its outer end in contact with the lowermost flexible connection 64, as shown in Figure 3. Each installation includes a pair of these brace members, one at each end of the awning. At its inner end, each brace member 70 terminates in a laterally projecting flange portion 72 that may be anchored to the window frame F as shown, or to the building proper. The outer end of each brace member may be riveted as suggested at 74, or otherwise rigidly secured to the main body portion 54 of one of the end plates 52.

As hercinbefore noted, the flexibility inherent in the panel member connections 64 provides for the ready assembly of awnings having various contours, the ultimate contour being dependent on the selected shape of the end plates 52. An example is presented in Figure 11. This view exhibits an awning construction 112 embodying components similar to those embodied in the awning construction 12, wherefore the same reference numerals have been applied to them. The end plates 52 of the awning 112 are straight rather than arcuate, but otherwise, they are similar to the corresponding end plates of the awning construction 12. Figure 11 also demonstrates an awning construction incorporating fewer intermediate panel members 18 than are incorporated in the awning construction 12.

From the foregoing description augmented by an inspection of the drawings, it is believed apparent that our invention provides a novel metallic awning construction having numerous advantages not found in prior art constructions. The hollow bead section 24 at the top accommodates swinging the awning 12 inwardly or outwardly from the position thereof shown in Figure 3, thereby facilitating installation of the brace members 70. The connections 64 serve also to add rigidity to the assembled awning, and the disposition of the outer ends of said brace members 70 against the lowermost of these connections, insures stability of the entire installation.

It is believed that a few observations with respect to the transverse connections 64 are in order. As previously pointed out, these flexible interlocking connections of the panel members are designed to expedite and facilitate the production of variously contoured awnings. In an assembled awning installation, the theretofore flexible connections 64 are transformed into rigid connections, inasmuch as the depending flanges 38 of all panels 18 are positively secured to the ends plates 54.

The disposition of the awnings 12 and 112 may obviously be varied from the exemplary positions of them shown in Figures 3 and 11 in consequence of employing brace members 70 that are longer, or shorter, than the a; a a l brace member portrayed in Figure 2. The inturned flanges 56 of the end plates 52 overlie the extremities of the panel members, thus serving to enhance the appearance of the assembled awning. The flanges 56 also facilitate the assembly operation, functioning as guides in the positioning and securing of the panel members as should be manifest. If desired, the main body portions 54 of the end plates may be provided with scalloped edges or the like for decorative purposes. The louvers 42 are omitted from the uppermost panel member 14 in all installations, and in arcuate installations it may sometimes be advisable to also dispense with the louvers in the panel member 18 subjacent to said uppermost panel.

An important feature of the invention as hereinbefore noted, resides in the ventilation plus visibility provided by the louvers 42. Because of this louver provision, an awning, such as the awning 12 shown in Figure 1, may have its lowermost panel member 16 disposed in a plane corresponding to, or but slightly above that of the window frame sill S. Thus the entire window frame would be shielded from the elements.

Whereas the preferred embodiments have been illustrated and described, the invention may admit of some structural changes without departing from the scope thereof as set forth in the claims hereunto appended.

What we claim is:

1. In a metal awning construction, the combination of: a plurality of interconnected generally rectangular panel members including an uppermost, a lowermost and intermediate panel members; a pair of spaced similarly contoured end plates and means associated therewith and with the panel members to impart rigidity to said members in the assembled status of the awning; vertical rows of spaced louvers in each panel member except the uppermost defining drainage channels extending from near the top to the bottom of the awning; a hanger strip permanently secured to a building above an opening therein; a hollow bead section coextensive with and forming the top marginal edge of the uppermost panel member and adapted to engage in a channel portion of the hanger member whereby to support the awning at the top; a pair of brace members each permanently secured at its outer end to one of the end plates and at its inner end to said building whereby to support said awning at the bottom; and a protective strip coextensive with and associated with said hanger strip shielding said channel portion of the hanger member and the therein engaged hollow bead section aforesaid from the elements, the contour of said end plates serving to determine the interconnected disposition of said panel members relatively to one another.

2. In an awning construction of the character described: a plurality of sheet metal panel members; a flexible connection between adjacent panel members, each said connection comprising a hollow bead section coextensive with and forming the lower marginal edge of an upper panel member intervolved with a hollow bead section coextensive with and forming the upper marginal edge of an adjacent lower panel member, each hollow bead section including a substantially circular segment merging into and terminating in a radial segment, a pair of spaced end plates; a depending flange on both ends of each panel member; and means securing said depending flanges to said end plates whereby to transform the flexible connections aforesaid into rigid connections.

3. In an awning construction of the character described including a plurality of interconnected sheet metal panel members, an uppermost panel member comprising integrally: a generally rectangular main body portion; an offset extension coextensive with said body portion at the top thereof; a rolled formation or hollow bead section constituting the marginal edge of said extension; a flange bent normal to said body portion provided at each end of said panel member, each flange having a pair of apertures formed therein; and a rolled formation or hollow bead section coextensive therewith and forming the bottom marginal edge of said body portion, both said hollow bead sections comprising a substantially circular segment merging at one end into said main body portion of the panel, and merging at its other end into a radial terminal segment.

4. In an awning construction of the character described including a plurality of interconnected sheet; metal panel members, a lowermost and intermediate panel members each comprising integrally: a generally rectangular main body portion; a rolled formation or hollow bead section constituting one marginal edge of said body portion; a similar hollow head section constituting the opposite marginal edge of said body portion, both bead sections being longitudinally coextensive therewith; a pair of flanges each bent normal to said main body of the panel at one end thereof; apertures adapted to accommodate passage therethrough of a fastening element provided in each flange aforesaid; rows of vertically and horizontally spaced louver formations pressed from or extruded from said main body portion of the panel member; and a plurality of drain channels defined by the spaced confluences of said louver formations with the body portion of said panel.

5. Metal awning construction comprising in combination: a plurality of interconnected transverse panel members; a pair of spaced end plates; depending flanges formed on the ends of each panel member; means securing said depending flanges to said end plates; an inturned flange on each end plate overlying the adjacent ends of the panel members; spaced rows of louvers having a generally arcuate configuration formed in each of the panel members except the uppermost, said uppermost panel member being imperforate; a hanger strip anchored to a building above an opening therein, said strip including a channel segment coextensive therewith; means along the top marginal edge of the uppermost panel member in engagement with the channel segment of said hanger strip whereby to support the awning at the top from end to end thereof; and a pair of spaced brace members each having its outer end secured to one of said end plates adjacent the bottom thereof and its opposite end anchored to said building, whereby to support the awning at the bottom thereof.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS D. 153,622 Peeples May 3, 1949 876,593 Rush Jan. 14, 1908 1,437,947 Probert Dec. 5, 1922 1,893,659 Stack Jan. 10, 1933 2,532,401 Goodwin Dec. 5, 1950 2,640,143 Malone May 26, 1953 

